I came across this image the other day and, like most people, it gave me a bit of a chuckle. In case you’re not up to date on why it’s funny, let me bring you up to Pop Culture speed.
There’s this music television network that stopped playing music a long time ago. On this network is a show called, Jersey Shore, about 6 Italian-Americans and 2 imposters that are picked to live in a house on the boardwalk of a New Jersey beach town. Over the course of a summer, 7 of the residents attempt to sleep with each other and the rest of the townsfolk, drink and party from night to day, and fist pump like like an alternative energy windmill. Rumor has it that they also sold t-shirts in the daytime, but in all the episodes I’ve seen, I haven’t seen them make a single sale.
I hope this summary has helped to bring you up to speed on what has become an international phenomenon?
Rest assured that this article is not about the merits of a show like Jersey Shore, but rather about how a Pop Culture phenomenon affects a shirt brand.
If you’re like most tshirt designers, you dream of the day when your designs get some sort of major recognition. You sit in your shop, or studio, dreaming up ways to get exposure and you think, “If I could only get my shirt on somebody famous, the sales will start to roll.” The reality is that you can get the exposure if you are willing to give away enough free shirts and sponsorship money. What’s tricky is getting the right exposure.
Be Careful what you wish for!
Imagine that your design is seen on a popular TV series. Fans want to be like the stars and figure the best way to achieve that is to dress like them, so they seek out your shirts. You move units like never before and it’s an elevator ride of fame and riches all the way to the top. But wait, like most Pop Culture phenomenons, the site jumps the shark and those stars become the next targets of the take-down media. As the distance between the cast of Jersey Shore widens, so does the demand for not only your shirts, but also your designs.
Suddenly, you can’t get into the club with your own shirt on.
Better to be loved and lost than not loved at all, right?
I think it depends on how much success you gain while the Pop Culture fad is hot. If you read between the lines of the image at the top of this article, you will see the names of the real victims of discrimination, Affliction, Ed Hardy, Christian Audiger. I use the term “victim” loosely here, not because they are mega brands that make millions of dollars, but because I’m sure they knew that there would eventually be a push-back towards the brand and planned accordingly. How much do you need to make for it to be worth becoming a pariah?
There are lots of stories about how a brand feels damaged by a particular type of consumer:
Cristal
Tommy Hilfiger (Just a rumor)
Jaguar
And in regards to the 3 examples above, I don’t wear those shirts because I’m just tired of winged designs printed up to my neck and shoulders. I guess the association with Meatheads looking to start fights in the middle of the club is not helping them either.
On the other hand, and if I was a designer, I would probably jump at the chance to ride the Pop Culture elevator. If you become famous enough for a really large group of people to become tired of you, you’ve probably made a good chunk of money along the way.
That’s the reason we’re here, to sell shirts. Right?
For that matter, do these spikes in popularity damage a shirt brand or is it all part of the process.
Drop a comment and let me know what you think.
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{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
All but 0.1% of T-shirt designers could dream of this kind of popularity/unpopularity. The bigger question has to be how do you stay there and remain true to your origins when the money people get involved. In my humble opinion, Insanely good screen printing combined with old school tattoo was never going to fail, regardless WHO might wear it.